Swearing by Allah or by one of His Attributes

Q 1: One of my relatives is an architect. He made a design for my land, so I gave him 5,000 Riyals in an envelope, but he swore not to take it, and I swore that he must take it, but he swore again. He did not take it. What is the ruling on this?

A: If the situation is as you have mentioned, and you swore by Allah or by one of His Attributes, you have to pay Kaffarah (expiation) for an oath, which is feeding or clothing ten needy people, or emancipating a believing slave. If you cannot do either, you have to observe Sawm (fasting) for three days. However, if you swore by anything else, tell us so that we can inform you.May Allah grant us success. May peace and blessings be upon our Prophet Muhammad, his family, and Companions.